What Is History? Part 4B
by Clyde N. Wilson
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American Views: The North
The Lord made use of my Pen to write many Books for the advancement of His Kingdome; Yea, and had strangely encouraged and fortified my Serviceableness, by such Marks of Respect from other Parts of the World, as no Person in America has ever yett received before me. —Cotton Mather, first New England historian
. . . thro’ the Energy, and Subtilty of Satan, Prejudices were like to prevail against me . . . People were now prejudiced against me for printing so many Books. —Cotton Mather
Fellow citizens, we cannot escape history. –Abe Lincoln Duh?
The supreme purpose of history is a better world. —Herbert Hoover (Duh!)
History is more or less bunk . . . . We want to live in the present, and the only history that is worth a tinker’s damn is the history we make today. —Henry Ford
Governor James Hamilton of South Carolina describing George Bancroft, the Massachusetts scribbler who claimed to be the greatest American historian of the 19th century: I know this man thoroughly. He is the very living Presentment of that Class of Metaphysicians which Burke describes so admirably in his work on the French Revolution. He is . . . faithless and as sycophantic as faithless. . . . His conduct to his Coadjutor Mr. Cogswell was compounded of all that was odious in ingratitude and bad faith, whilst for mere purposes of popularity, he has pushed the doctrines of Agrarianism & Dorrism to the most disgusting & licentious extent. Have a care.
The cause of America is the cause of virtue and mankind. —Alexander Hamilton
The settlement of America was the opening of a grand scheme and design in Providence for the illumination of the ignorant, and the emancipation of the slavish part of mankind over the earth. —John Adams
As history stands, it is a sort of Chinese play, without end and without lesson. —Henry Adams
History is the most aristocratic of all literary pursuits, because it obliges the historian to be rich as well as educated. —Henry Adams
History will die unless irritated. The only contribution I can make to my profession is to serve as a flea. —Henry Adams
I don’t believe the truth will ever be known, and I have a great contempt for history. —Gen. George G. Meade
Whatever is old corrupts, and the past turns to snakes. —Waldo Emerson
In analysing history do not be too profound, for often the causes are quite superficial. —Emerson
Men’s lives are chains of chances and history their sum. —Bayard Taylor
Years should not be devoted to the acquisition of dead languages or to the study of history which, for the most part, is a detailed account of things that never occurred. —Robert G. Ingersoll
Events, which are the arguments of God, are stronger than words, which are the arguments of men. —Albert J. Beveridge
It is everlastingly true that on the whole the best guide to the future is to be found in a proper understanding of the lessons of the past. —Warren G. Harding (Wow! George Bush look to your laurels as philosopher.)
History repeats itself. That’s one of the things wrong with history. —Clarence Darrow
One curious thing about history . . . is that it really happened. —Allan Nevins (Duh!)
History does not usually make sense until long afterward. —Bruce Catton (Huh?)
A wise man does not try to hurry history? —Adlai Stevenson (Huh?)
When we wanted sandwiches, we had to use a knife the slice the bread; sliced bread was still in the future. . . . In September 1931 I traveled forty miles north from Cambridge to boarding school. . . . Boredom arose in my third undergraduate year. . . . The war was everywhere [1939] . . . The war rumbled on [while he labored on his first book and interesting papers came across his desk in Washington] —From the memoirs of Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., a Massachusetts scribbler claimed to be the greatest American historian of the 20th century.
History, history! We fools, what do we know or care. —William Carlos Williams
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1 Comment by Rob on 7 November 2007:
An interesting group of quotes though I wish W. had Harding’s record and I don’t think Herbert Hoover should be included. While he was born in Iowa, he left when he was 10 after the death of both his parents and grew to maturity in Oregon and California. He was also a Quaker which is a bit outside the Puritan mainstream.
2 Comment by Grumpy Old Man on 7 November 2007:
Harding had his flaws, but was a paragon of immobilism. That’s a good thing, compared to just about every other Pres. in the last 100 years.
In short, he is underrated.
3 Comment by Harry Wisniewski on 7 November 2007:
In defense of the North, and with pride, we in Michigan claim Russell Kirk as one of our own and he certainly had a sane view of history.
The South is not the only area of the land that has been free fire zone for Yankee scoundrels. We in the so-called “Rust belt” North have taken it in the groin continually from for decades. The only difference seems to be that the South prefers Republican Party abuse while we in the North prefer the Democratic Party abuse.
4 Comment by Caper on 7 November 2007:
The patriot Charles Lindbergh haled from the Midwest. Surely he had some wise things to say about history, as did Sen. Taft.
5 Comment by Harry Wisniewski on 7 November 2007:
Charles Lindbergh was born Detroit, Michigan. Kirk’s birth place, Plymouth, MI, and Detroit are both in Wayne County. Makes me proud!
Of course we won’t take credit for the former Governor of Massachusetts running for president.
6 Comment by robert m. peters on 7 November 2007:
If President Gen. Pervez Musharraf gets hold of all of these quotes which Dr. Wilson has provided, he can tell President Bush that he will take off his uniform, as Bush demanded, the day after he finishes giving a quote a day from Dr. Wilson’s entires on Chronicles over the last few months. (Sort of like an Arabian Nights’ ploy!) The good man has already compared himself to Lincoln, to which I say that Lincoln was more like the historical Musharraf than Musharraf is the mythological Lincoln. Hopefully, he has some underwear on under that uniform. Surely, he will take it off, since the Great Decider has so ordered it.
” ‘As history stands, it is a sort of Chinese play, without end and without lesson.’ —Henry Adams”
I respectfully suggest that this quote should be applied to the Republican Party in general and to the current Republican administration in particular.
7 Comment by Sid Cundiff on 8 November 2007:
Dr. Wilson:
I saw a book today at Barnes and Nobles that claims that Lincoln consulted mediums and held seances. Any truth to this claim of history? Or is someone just trying to sell a book? The book was pro-Lincoln.
8 Comment by craig on 9 November 2007:
RE:7Sid It is not just a claim. Mary Todd Lincoln was deeply involved in “spiritism” and regularly partook of seances. Abe would sometimes join in if time permitted. While there is no record of Abe ever being baptised or ever associating with any church body he was drawn to Spiritism which was a bit fashionable then among the “elite” in Britain and the U.S..
9 Comment by robert m. peters on 9 November 2007:
If you have a compelling urge to experience historical ignorance and how such ignorance can lead to both blasphemy and heresy, find you way to Southern churches this Sunday, Veterans’ Day, and see how many of them break into Caesar’s song, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”!
10 Comment by m. zurich on 11 November 2007:
as for books dogs, romances and lincoln sell the best. how about a dog in love with lincoln’s leg – there’s a winner. h. ford would say see that’s history in the present. let’s get in our cars and drive away. if ford knew history he would have scrapped the car. son, i’m going to put you in a missile made of metal and glass and filled with highly combustible fuels and let you shoot yourself down the road at uncontrollable speeds – sound like a plan?! [no car salesman could sell one, telling it like that.] 60 thousand die on the roads each year and only 10% are due to drunk or impaired driving. that’s because the thing itself as is is the DANGER. but folks love it, like lincoln or a lincoln, it does ’sell’. you can even put a dog in it.
11 Comment by Ronduck on 13 November 2007:
In defense of New England it was a Bostonian who headed the Immigration Restriction League and helped bring about the immigration cutoff after the first world war.
http://www.vdare.com/fulford/1894_1924.htm
In addition the legislation was signed by Calvin Coolidge, who was the former governor of Massachusetts.
Although, I admit it would be nice to have them pushing the same viewpoints now that they did then.
12 Comment by Allen on 13 November 2007:
“Change – above all violent change – is the essence of human history.”
Michael Ledeen, always hoping to make history…..
13 Comment by Hucbald on 14 November 2007:
“Hegel remarks somewhere that all great, world-historical facts and personages occur, as it were, twice. He has forgotten to add: the first time as tragedy, the second as farce.” – Karl Marx
“A history in which every particular incident may be true may on the whole be false.” – MacAulay
“Historians are gossips who tease the dead.” – Voltaire
“God cannot alter the past, though historians can.” – Samuel Butler
“Poetry is nearer to vital truth than history.” – Plato
“History, in general, only informs us what bad government is.” – Jefferson
“History is the propaganda of the victors.” – Ernst Toller
I claim trump on all of the above quotations. After all, almost nobody ever quotes Marx correctly.
14 Comment by PcH on 15 November 2007:
Thanks, Hucbald, for the additions.
No one quotes men well who make hard reading.
15 Comment by El Cid on 18 November 2007:
Dr. Wilson,
Unrelated to your post here but I wanted to say again it was a real pleasure to meet you yesterday at Dixie Republic.
16 Comment by Clyde Wilson on 18 November 2007:
Likewise, El Cid. Keep up the good posts.